From:  "Dik de Heer"  
Date:  Sun Nov 7, 2004  2:31 am 
Subject:  This Is My Story : Andre Williams
 
ANDRE WILLIAMS (By Dominic Turner)

Born Zeffrey "Andre" Williams, 1 November 1936, Bessemer, Alabama

Look up the word "sleazy" in the dictionary, and it's odds-on you'll find the
name Andre Williams. But this minor R&B legend has a pretty impressive CV to go
with his disreputable image, having worked in various capacities with the likes
of Berry Gordy, Stevie Wonder, Bobby Bland, Ike Turner, Amos Milburn, Edwin
Starr, Alvin Cash, Mary Wells, George Clinton, the Dramatics, and a host of
others. Singer, songwriter, producer and even road manager, he really deserves
more credit for his half-century contribution to the world of rhythm and blues.
Born in Bessemer, Alabama, Williams moved north with his family to a Chicago 
housing project when he was but a toddler. Little else is known about his 
childhood, except that Williams' mother died when he was 6 years old, and he was 
subsequently raised by his aunts. Andre's first documented singing experience 
was in Chicago's Cobbs Baptist Church choir in 1952. "That taught me
real, technical gospel singing", he later claimed.

After a period of military service (some sources indicate that Williams spent
time in a military prison after using fake ID to enlist in the navy), and brief
stints with local doo wop groups called the Cavaliers and the Five Thrills, he
moved to another great musical city, Detroit. Aware that a singing career was
well within his capabilities, Andre quickly befriended Jack and Devora Brown,
the owners of Fortune Records. The Browns had founded the label in 1947, and
despite working with primitive resources (the recording studio was an Ampex 350
in the back room of the Browns' record shop!), they had managed to score a
national hit in 1953 in the shape of "Jealous Love" by the Davis Sisters
(Skeeter and Betty Jack). For a very interesting "Detroit News" article on
Fortune Records, see:

http://www.detnews.com/2001/entertainment/0111/06/f01-336360.htm.

At Fortune, Williams recorded with a group called the Don Juans, who also cut
records as the Five Dollars. If that sounds a tad complicated. it was! Both
outfits were tough R&B quintets featuring exactly the same members: Charles
Evans (bass), James Drayton (baritone), Lonnie Heard (tenor), Eddie Hurt (lead
tenor, and cousin of Andre's wife), and Richard Lawrence (guitar). But Devora
Brown used the Don Juans as a backing group for Andre Williams (as well as other
Fortune artists), and had them revert to the "Five Dollars" moniker whenever
they made a recording as the primary artists. The "Don Juans" name was
tailor-made for Williams, as Devora was adamant that it evoked his unique style
and charisma. Andre had no illusions of possessing the singing voice of fellow
Fortune artist Nolan Strong, and he soon developed an innovative talking style
which was to feature on many of his records, and which long preceded the rap
generation.

He cut a total of twelve singles with Fortune (seven in 1956 alone), most of
which were co-billed with the Don Juans. Starting with the 1955 release "Going
Down To Tia Juana" and ending with "Movin'" (1961), Williams was responsible for
some of the greasiest, rudest R&B around. Song titles like "Bacon Fat", "The
Greasy Chicken", and "Please Pass The Biscuits" betray a certain obsession with
matters culinary, but sexual innuendo was rarely missing from Williams'
compositions. Without doubt, his two most celebrated sides were the
afore-mentioned "Bacon Fat" (1956), a hilarious R&B dance romp (Andre's cries of
"Have mer-cey!" and his mumbled comments about chicken are nothing short of
hilarious!), and "Jail Bait" (1957), a slow novelty rap (also credited to Gino
Purifoy), where Andre narrates with an almost bored intonation before squealing
his plea for freedom to the judge.

The idea for "Bacon Fat" (the most popular Fortune recording, along with "The
Wind" by Nolan Strong & the Diablos) came to Williams on his way to a gig at the
Flamingo Club in Memphis. On his return to Detroit, he convinced Devora Brown to
book a session in the studio, and while she set up the studio mics, Williams
jotted down some nonsense lyrics on a table napkin. Most of the folks at Fortune
were pretty sceptical of Andre's new spoken style of singing, and the only
person who really believed in it was DJ Frantic Eddie Durham, who supervised the
session. But the record took off, and sales of "Bacon Fat" were such that Epic
Records purchased the master and took control of distribution, once it became
clear that Fortune were unable to cope with the demand. Williams, nicknamed "Mr.
Rhythm", and the Don Juans also performed regularly in clubs from Detroit to
Memphis and, as you might expect, these live shows were pretty wild affairs.
Williams wowed the audience with his lavender suits, while the band would don
(sorry about that!) Zorro-style masks for their first set, and then return
without the masks to sing as the Five Dollars!

So it was that the Five Dollars / Don Juans became the second most prolific
group on the Fortune roster, just behind the legendary Nolan Strong & the
Diablos. But relations between Williams and the Don Juans soured after the
success of "Bacon Fat". not least because he used a different backing group on
the record, which was credited to Andre Williams & His New Group. The Five
Dollars attempted belatedly to capitalise on the situation by cutting a
follow-up "How To Do The Bacon Fat" (1957), but it was not to be.

By 1961, Williams was helping Berry Gordy at Motown. Although he had a recording
contract with Motown, he never actually made a record for any of Gordy's labels
and his contribution was largely as a producer and writer. Amongst others,
Williams co-wrote Little Stevie Wonder's debut "Thank You For Loving Me", and
the B-side of Mary Wells' "My Guy", entitled "Oh Little Boy What You Do to Me",
and lent his production talents to the Contours. The relationship with Berry
Gordy was a love-hate affair; Gordy had his own way of working, and it clashed
with the flashy, street-smart approach of Williams. As a result, he was fired on
numerous occasions, only to be welcomed back into the fold shortly afterwards.

Amid so much hiring-and-firing, Williams also managed to co-write the celebrated
"Shake a Tail Feather" with Verlie Rice and Otha Hayes, a hit for the Five
DuTones, and "Twine Time" for Alvin Cash & the Crawlers on George Leaner's
One-derful Records in Chicago. Another writing credit was "Girls Are Getting
Prettier" for Edwin Starr on Ric Tic. Williams even acted as Starr's road
manager for a brief period.

In 1965, he left Motown for good and moved full-time to Chicago, where he signed
a contract with none other than Chess Records. Williams then released a worthy
succession of R&B singles for Chess/Checker during the second half of the
decade, including "The Stroke", "Gridle Up (Parts 1 and 2)", and "Cadillac
Jack". He also lent his production and songwriting talents to a host of minor
acts, both for Chess and for the Peacock label in Houston.

However, his wild lifestyle caught up with him after he was asked to produce a
record for Ike Turner in the early seventies. His collaboration with Ike was
stormy to say the least, but to make matters worse Williams developed a very
serious coke habit. He returned to Chicago a total junkie, and spent several
years roaming the streets and begging, but somehow surviving.

The fact that he managed to resurrect his career in the mid-nineties with a
spate of recordings, including the album "Greasy" (on Norton), is a credit to
his determination, and the excellent support he has had from people such as Jon
Spencer, and Billy Miller & Miriam Linna at Norton Records. In fact, Williams
now lives in Queens, New York, and has released more records since his comeback
than in the first 40 years of his career! In 1999, he even satisfied a lifetime
ambition by making a country album for the Bloodshot label, and has continued
his habit of collaborating with the most diverse artists, including the El
Dorados, the Sadies, and Dick Taylor (ex-Pretty Things guitarist). In the words
of Lux Interior: "Andre Williams makes Little Richard sound like Pat Boone"!

N.B. For those Shakers not familiar with "Bacon Fat" (probably not many of
you!), I'll try and upload an MP3 when time allows.

RECOMMENDED LISTENING:

a.. "Jailbait" [LP, Fortune, 1984] - contains most of the songs from his
classic '50s Fortune period, although "Bacon Fat" is surprisingly missing.
Bootleg?

b.. "Bacon Fat" [LP, Fortune, 1986] - contains most of Williams' Fortune
output.

c.. "Bait & Switch" [CD, Norton] - far more modern production (and might
therefore appeal to all Shakers!), but a pretty worthwhile release all the same!

Methinks it's time that Norton (or whoever) put out a big CD collection,
spanning the 50 odd years of Andre Williams' career.